Danielle Ate The Sandwich @ Old Curtis Street Bar
Published: Monday, March 15, 2010
Updated: Monday, March 15, 2010 23:03
photo: Alicia Schuster | UCD Advocate
Danielle Ate The Sandwich prepares to become Danielle Ate The Microphone.
Danielle Ate The Sandwich played last week to an empty house. But that didn't matter to the one woman behind the band; Danielle just closed her eyes, perhaps picturing herself in a busy venue.
Maybe that trick is what led to an entertaining performance filled with water slides, a beautiful voice, and no sandwiches to be seen.
Danielle Ate The Sandwich is best known for winning Westword's best singer/songwriter for 2009, and the act hasn't lost the talent that brought the award on. Standing up on the stage accompanied by just a tiny ukulele, she looked like a joke at first.
But then Danielle opened her mouth and released her sweet, calming, Norah Jones-esque voice. But Danielle was much more entertaining than Jones could ever be.
Members of opening act Night Owl and a few stragglers were all that hung around to hear Danielle sing.
Members of opening act Night Owl and a few stragglers were all that hung around to hear Danielle sing.
But after each song was finished, she'd open her eyes and look right at the TV at the bar. There was a program on about water slides that kept Danielle commenting on water parks the whole time.
But while her eyes were closed, she'd release soft, gentle lyrics about growing up and everyday life. The songs were incredibly touching in their simplicity. The venue was so quiet it was easy to hear every whisper from the stage as she dramatically sang.
"Silver And Gold," a new song from her upcoming third album, has the feel of a 60s protest song with lyrics like "It's hard to admit these things we've done/You've made the people proud." At the end of the song she announced that was about the moon landing.
This young folk singer sang her heart out as she played her tiny ukulele. Van Morrison's "Crazy Love" was the only cover of the night and the way Danielle sang the song brought goose bumps to the few in attendance.
The rest of her set was more original work including "Bribes" and "One Year Later." When a member of Night Owl asked what sandwich she'd eaten that day, Danielle answered, "I had Wendy's today. I don't think that counts. My favorite sandwich is a warm grilled cheese." She closed her set with "Fool," another peaceful song accompanied by the soft strums of her ukulele.
The number of people doesn't determine a good performance or not. All you have to do is close your eyes.
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